Government unlikely to secure trade deal with India this month
The government’s hopes of securing a trade deal with India by the end of October appear to have faded,
Two sources, reported in the Financial Times and Politico, say that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s floated hopes of getting ink on the page before Halloween are now defunct.
It comes amid the international community’s focus being trained on the Middle East, with the current conflict between Israel and Hamas threatening to overwhelm the region.
The 13th round of negotiations are still underway after four weeks and discussions are a “very live situation”, one official told City A.M.
There were hopes that Sunak would be meeting Indian prime minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi this month in a bid to coincide the deal with the England vs India cricket match on October 29.
But sources now say plans are “very unlikely” to come off.
Talks have been troubled by reports of limited progress in gaining UK professional services access to Indian markets. Sunak has made it clear that he won’t rush into any agreements.
His language is a marked departure from his predecessors Liz Truss and Boris Johnson who both insisted they could secure the key Brexit boon in a ‘deal by Diwali’.
The UK is said to be hoping the agreement will boost the whisky and car trade as well as investments, while India understood to be is holding out on work and student visa numbers.
One Indian official reportedly told the FT any deal should be “fair, equitable and have respect for both sides”.
Business and trade secretary Kemi Badenoch had said over the summer that a deal was in its “final stages” amid a visit to mark the G20.
But she insisted on Wednesday that she wouldn’t “sacrifice quality for speed” while speaking to a car industry trade conference.
Both sides, however, will be keen to land an agreement as soon as possible with both Britain and India gearing up for elections next year.